Interest rates

Hello and welcome! You’ve taken your first steps into the world of finance, and guess what you’ve found? It’s interest rates, the kings of the world of finance! 👑

They might sound like the boring chatter of suited people on business news channels, but they’re actually pretty cool once you understand them. Trust us! 😎

Let’s dive into this fascinating world, and we promise we’ll make it as fun and simple as possible.

So, what on earth are interest rates?

Imagine you’re in a marketplace in olden times. You’re a baker, and your oven has just broken. To keep your business going, you need to borrow some money. Your friend, who’s a farmer, lends you the cash.

But he doesn’t do this out of sheer kindness; he asks for something in return. This extra he asks for, my friend, is called ‘interest’. The rate at which he asks for this extra amount is what we call the ‘interest rate.’

In simpler terms, an interest rate is the cost of borrowing money, expressed as a percentage of the amount you borrow. 💰

But it’s not all about borrowing! It also works the other way around. If you deposit money in a savings account or invest in a bond, the bank or bond issuer pays you for using your money. This payment is also calculated as an interest rate.

Interest rates in daily life

You might be thinking, “Well, I’m not borrowing or lending any significant amount of money, why should I care?”

But interest rates influence you in more ways than you might realise.

For instance, say you’re eyeing a brand-new smartphone. You might decide to buy it using a credit card. 💳 The interest rate on your card will determine how much you’ll ultimately pay for that phone. If the interest rate is high, you’ll pay significantly more than the original price.

Similarly, when you put your hard-earned cash in a savings account, the interest rate determines how much your money will grow over time. The higher the interest rate, the more your money will multiply. 📈

The fun side of interest rates

Now, let’s spice things up with some fun facts about interest rates. Did you know that back in ancient times, farmers in Sumer (modern-day Southern Iraq) were among the first to use interest rates?

They used to charge interest on loans of cattle and grain. The standard rate was 33.3% — quite hefty by today’s standards!

A real-life example: Alice and Bob’s adventure

Let’s bring our story closer to the present. Meet Alice and Bob. Alice has a great business idea for a vegan 🍆 burger joint. She’s got everything figured out, but she needs money to start.

So, she decides to borrow £10,000 from Bob. They agree on an annual interest rate of 5%.

By the end of the year, Alice has to pay Bob back his £10,000 along with an extra £500 (5% of £10,000). This £500 is the ‘interest’ Alice pays for the privilege of using Bob’s money.

And the 5%? You guessed it—it’s the interest rate!

Why should you care?

Interest rates may seem like a dry topic, but they are vitally important. They influence our daily decisions, from buying on credit to saving and investing.

They even affect the economy as a whole — but that’s a tale for another time. Understanding interest rates is like being given a key to a secret club, the club of financial savvy. 🤓

So, give yourself a pat on the back. You’ve just taken a first step towards understanding the financial world. Now, every time you hear the phrase ‘interest rates,’ you can smile knowingly. 

You’re no longer an outsider. You’re part of the club. But that’s not all… in the next chapter, we dive deeper into the role of interest rates in the economy!